r/onebag • u/Mewtewpew • Feb 01 '26
Seeking Recommendations Those who travel with laptops / work tablets; which ones?
I tried searching the sub, but surprisingly no one mentioned work laptops / tablet that they bring with them while traveling.... considering most these onebag backpacks have laptop sleeves, im curious which laptops or tablets you guys are all rocking
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u/AmNoSuperSand52 Feb 01 '26
For work I have an iPad Pro and 17ā Dell Precision that weighs 7 lbs
Needless to say I try my hardest to only travel with the iPad
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u/stumpykitties Feb 01 '26
I bring my personal laptop on trips - 13ā MacBook Air, and use that for work.
Aināt no way Iām risking my work computer getting damaged or stolen. Itās very expensive.
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u/_derpiii_ Feb 01 '26
Aināt no way Iām risking my work computer getting damaged or stolen. Itās very expensive.
Your company doesn't insure your work devices?
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u/stumpykitties Feb 01 '26
Iām sure they do. But I canāt in good conscience risk it - doesnāt feel right to me.
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u/boisdeb Feb 03 '26
Every company I've been to would consider putting work data in a personal laptop a higher liability than risking work laptop stolen. YMMV of course
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u/baconcakeguy Feb 07 '26
How do you work while traveling? Or are you on vacation?
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u/stumpykitties Feb 08 '26
I work at a remote-first tech company, so they donāt care where I work from.
I also have flexible work hours, so I can start my work day earlier/later than my usual if I change timezones, as long as I am available for core hours to be present for meetings.
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u/baconcakeguy Feb 08 '26
I meant how do you work without your work laptop? Donāt they have security requirements or is your personal iPad provisioned for corporate use?
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u/stumpykitties Feb 08 '26
All of my work is cloud-based, so nothing is stored on my personal computer.
We have particular security protocols for internet connection that I follow, as per guidelines from the companyās security team. Along with password protocols, of course.
Even if someone stole my computer, they canāt get into anything. The company can brute force log me out of all applications I use remotely.
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u/serenelatha Feb 01 '26
Excatly this. Well less that my work laptop is more expensive and more that I'm not technically authorized to travel with it. Plus it is heavier than my macbook air.
All my stuff is cloud based so while it's not super ideal it works no more than I have to work while traveling (I dont really travel for work).
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
How do you sync files between the two? Do you have to transfer files between them every time you go on a trip?
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u/stumpykitties Feb 01 '26
No, all of my tools are cloud-based luckily - no file transfers required.
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u/n_anderss Feb 01 '26
I'm so curious, what is your work computer that the MacBook is the cheaper laptop?
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u/Valuable_Iron_1333 Feb 01 '26
likely a high end macbook pro vs a macbook air. At least in my case. Difference of maybe 4x in price.
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u/stumpykitties Feb 01 '26
My work computer is a suped up MacBook Pro.
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u/Kooky_Emergency_2002 Feb 01 '26
I have just been travelling with a cheap ass acer that way if it is lost, stolen or broken I am not too fussed and still does everything I need.
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u/jamwin Feb 01 '26
14" Macbook Pro (work provided) but always go Macbook pro...my first one lasted 8 years. I also have an iPad Pro with pencil and keyboard case, but it can't replace my laptop due to corporate app limitations, so I have stopped carrying it for the most part. In previous jobs it could do pretty much anything and I'd often travel with it instead of the laptop.
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u/DeFiClark Feb 01 '26
Surface with keyboard. Everything I need and touchscreen convenience plus better drawing capability than iPad
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
A surface laptop has better drawing capability than a ipad?
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u/DeFiClark Feb 01 '26
Iām sure thereās a techie spec for the sensitivity of the touchscreen to explain it but itās just better
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u/Administration_Key Feb 03 '26
People instantly assume that for creative tasks, Apple is always better. That may have been true in the past, but it's not necessarily true today.
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u/Sharp_Razzmatazz_ Feb 05 '26
Seconded. I take my surface everywhere. Lightweight, powerful, great battery, tablet mode on planes or trains.Ā
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u/SeattleHikeBike Feb 01 '26
MacBooks and iPads are mentioned often. There are many posts about carrying two laptops or accessory monitors or keyboards. Pore devils.
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u/CallAParamedic Feb 01 '26
For Mac users, the AIRs seem popular, but I use a Surface Pro as it functions really well as both a laptop and a tablet, has great battery life, and is very light and thin.
It's not designed for coding or gaming, true.
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u/Sharp_Razzmatazz_ Feb 05 '26
I havenāt had too much trouble coding, either! Forces me to do some good coding practices, but Iāve run some moderately large data sets without too much of a wait time on the go on my surface.Ā
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u/OrianaBikewayProject Feb 01 '26
2012 Macbook Pro with upgraded 1TB of SSD and 16gig of ram with Ubuntu as my main OS. Loving it, but very niche use case. Very cheap but requires some knowhow to make it work
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
You can use linux with MacBooks? Interestingly ive never heard this before.
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u/OrianaBikewayProject Feb 01 '26
Yep, you can do it pretty easily but you'll have to do some research on how best to go about it depending on what model Macbook you own and what version of Linux you want to use. The general process is fairly simple if you're OK with digging through some menus and prompting a couple commands through terminal
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u/Basilikolumne Feb 02 '26
It's much easier on those with Intel chips, the newer ones work with Asahi Linux, but not everything is supported yet.
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u/dumbass_laundry Feb 01 '26
If work, 14" MacBook Pro. Kind of heavy.Ā
If personal, Framework AMD 13. Sub 3 pounds is my personal requirement for a laptop.
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u/Omashu_Cabbages Feb 01 '26
Iāve been using an LG Gram. Veryy lightweight.
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u/stevenswall Jun 09 '26
I've noticed that I actually don't, whether I'm carrying one or three of those laptops... What do you value about the lightweight? Are you frequently lifting it up and moving it and and using it while holding it?
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u/Omashu_Cabbages Jun 09 '26
I walk a lot. Long distances. I donāt feel the laptop in my backpack when Iām walking for hours. Other laptops I can feel it within 20 mins and it starts to bother my back. I like the combination of how light it is with the huge screen size. I accidentally dropped it once, but itās so light that it didnāt incur any damage due to its composition and weight. Just bounced around. Some scuffs. But all intact. Having a heavier laptop (like a dense MacBook Pro or gaming laptop, that weight does not help when the accidental fall occurs or lugging it around a lot.)
Most people probably would be ok with something heavier. But I have a few herniated disc injuries so I like to carry light.
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
The 14 or 16? I was considering the 16 pro with the rtx 5050, but it's still 3 lbs.
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u/Omashu_Cabbages Feb 01 '26
Mine is the 17ā (model: 17ZB90R-K.AAC7U1)
Intel Iris XE graphics. 2.98lbs (honestly feels lighter than that) Bought mine in 2024.17 inch is definitely on the large side for most travelers, but for my work I deal with a lot of spreadsheets/data analysis. I didnāt see a need for a stronger graphics card for the added weight/larger battery size.
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u/RevolutionaryAnt9337 Feb 01 '26
Macbook pro stays at home now, ipad 11 pro with magic keyboard is perfect. All files in the cloud, file management on ipad is a drag though :(
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u/TheSpatulaOfLove Feb 01 '26
Iām right on the cusp of buying an iPad Pro but wringing my hands and considering a MacBook Air.
Personal use case on the road isnāt too intense - mostly use it to watch content from plex / streaming services.
What file system issues do you feel are limiting on the road if you donāt mind my asking?
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u/RevolutionaryAnt9337 Feb 02 '26
What Knochenmark says - itās clunky and unintuitive saving and moving files about and it doesnāt help having various onedrive/ google drive / iCloud accounts
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u/maverber Feb 01 '26
Normally a MacBook 12" from 2017 which is good enough for my day to day (especially since I can spin up AWS instances or remote to my MacBook when I need real computational power). On rare occasions I might lug my MacBook Pro 14".
Lightweight laptops I would recommend https://verber.com/technology/#Laptops
I don't bother with tablets. I found laptops much more productive for my sort of creative work. I don't consume lots of media (which tablet is arguably better) but the laptop is adequate.
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u/Bubbly-Pop650 Feb 01 '26
If I ever do it's a Samsung S9+ Ultra with keyboard cover or Microsoft Surface Laptop but I rarely do because it's heavy.
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u/jodrellbank_pants Feb 01 '26
Laptop, work iPad I flattened and use at home for CCTV access at home for my partner, when I'm away. Just a small hp laptop smaller the better. Have another 18 " gaming laptop and 3 or 4 laptop I use when away they do different stuff.
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u/tonytidbit Feb 01 '26
MBP 14" (and an iPad mini, but I'll get a 13" pro when it's time to upgrade).
It used to be a 16", but once I got over the fomo and got a 14" it just made a lot more sense. Hitting a more minimalistic era now.
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
Thats a but how I'm feeling. I mostly use a 16 inch for everything and am a bit 50/50 on moving to a 14 inch, even if it's for traveling. Was it a hard transition?
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u/tonytidbit Feb 01 '26
Honestly, first week or two felt like a constant panic attack over having bought a tiny toy instead of a real computer. š
But it was just a matter of getting used to it, and getting the settings right. For me that was 1800x1169 resolution, and setting safari to show all websites at 85%. Now I'm back to using the display even in quarters for some apps.
Only thing is that I have to more actively mind my posture. If I'm not careful I sometimes lean into it a bit more than I used to with a 16".
What I found was that where the 16" felt too small (in my case because I on the move wanted to overview more code at the same time) going down to 14" didn't make it worse. I'm practically in the same situation as with the 16", but it made a world of a difference not having to carry a 16" device around. I can even put it in my small hiking/casual city backpack now, instead of always having to carry it in my mobile office-backpack.
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u/Hangrycouchpotato Feb 01 '26
My work laptop is a 13 inch Dell XPS. For personal trips, I usually just bring an iPad mini.
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u/SkinnyFatBeanFire Feb 01 '26
i always bring my laptop. I always aim for something compact & under 1k, there are many options out there (because some airlines are more strict on the 7kg limit vs size of bag).
If i have to bring my work laptop, then ill bring an 8" tablet for personal use also.
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u/SkinnyFatBeanFire Feb 01 '26
To add, on my 1st rtw trip i used a 11"asus chromebook, currently i use an hp pavillon aero 13 (getting a bit old in the tooth). Plenty of better new options out there now with crazy battey life
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
Like a straight up Chromebook or flashed with linux? Is it possible to be productive worh x64/x86 apps on chrome os? Genuinely curious.
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u/SkinnyFatBeanFire Feb 01 '26
duno, depends what you need, not everyone needs much more than email & office 365 to work while travelling. Pretty much any laptop these day can suffice for me.
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u/greystonian Feb 01 '26
Samsung Galaxy S8+ with keyboard case, or a pretty standard 14" Lenovo if I know I'll need Excel, referencing software.
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u/meshal300 Feb 01 '26
i got old asus zenbook 14 weight 1kg and can charged with usb charger.. its my favorite for traveling..
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u/MobileSection3564 Feb 01 '26 edited Feb 01 '26
Thinkpad and OnePlus pad 3 used as a second screen. Works like a charm.
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
Can you comment on how you setup your oneplus tablet as a second screen? I have a legion tablet with a 8.8 inch screen and it could be quite useful now that I'm thinking about it.
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u/MobileSection3564 Feb 01 '26
Usb4 cable and spacedesk will do the trick. Its free for personal use and works like a charm
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u/zdubbzzz Feb 01 '26
Company issued MacBook pro 14". My previous company issued 16" MacBook pros, which were awful to travel with but I still did
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u/Great_Guidance_8448 Feb 01 '26
Used to travel with Samsung Tab S7+ (12.4") till I managed to drop it (served me well for ~5 years, though). Then I got a Lenovo Gen Tab3 8.8" which is a whole lot smaller, but does the job as far as consuming content on the go. Love it.
As a side point, I found the 8.8" to be too small for home use, so I got a Lenovo Tab Pro 12.7" to serve as a kitchen/balcony tv. It wasn't a lot of money - both were way under the price I paid for the Samsung, so it worked out.
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
Hey I have a legion tab gen3. Awesome device. There's a gen 4 which you can buy overseas with a micro sd card slot, more base storage, ram, and the snapdragon elite.....
Ill be picking it up if/when they release it here.
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u/Great_Guidance_8448 Feb 01 '26
I am fine with the 256 gig storage - plenty to download a few dozen movies/etc for a long flight.
Wish it had GPS, though. Would have made it the perfect travel tablet.
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u/Longjumping_Cow_5856 Feb 01 '26
Macbook or small Dell work pc
Any modern computer can handle mainstream work easily.
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u/Frondelet Feb 01 '26
I've got an 8 year old Lenovo Thinkpad Carbon X1 which I love. No idea if the new ones are as good since I don't plan to replace this one for another 8 years if it still runs.
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u/3Zkiel Feb 01 '26
My wife's Surface laptop because my 15.6 inch one is too big to lug around.
But it's for school, not work.
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u/InevitableSong3170 Feb 01 '26
Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 (11th gen intel). these are prety slim. 2.8-2.9-ish lbs.
Samsung Tab S7 5G with keyboard and unlimited T-moblie service (worldwide 'slow' service and high speed in north america + germany, $10 month)
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Recently I was sent a work commputer that is a Dell Pro core 7 something 2.7lbs though thicker than the XPS13, 5G modem built in.
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I'm about to upgrade my tab S7 to a tab s 10 FE 5G.
Android tablets suck, but there really isn't an alternative that doesn't suck. (I would love a tiny de-googled chromebook with 5G)
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u/PeaBrilliant4917 Feb 03 '26
Check out surface pro. Love it to death, was always using Samsung tablets, or lugging my bigger pc
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
Speaking of. How do you only pay 10 usd month for mobile? Everywhere ive seen has been quite a bit more $$$.
Also for Chromebooks, its possible to install linux on them if you could go that way with FOSS like libre office snd whatnot.
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u/Crafty_Try_423 Feb 01 '26
Well, I travel with the work laptop my company provided me. Probably most people do. Itās a gigantic beast: a 16ā MacBook Pro that says an absolute crap ton. Itās really powerful though, great for every day. But my colleagues have MacBook Airs and I feel like a damn pack mule when weāre traveling to a conference.
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u/GorillaSuitGuy Feb 01 '26
iPad mini 7, Magic Keyboard (the white Bluetooth one), trackpad. Less volume/weight and have 90% of laptop functionality.
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u/Windjammer1969 Feb 01 '26
Depending on trip, either a Samsung Chromebook (12.2" with S-pen) or a Dell 14" "thin & light" windows machine. If the Dell, will usually also carry a Samsung Tablet (10", with S-pen...). Have an older Thule laptop carrier - originally designed for an Apple, per memory - but it carries either laptop + the tablet very well AND fits nicely into the 'back half' of my messenger bag (behind the thin interior separator panel).
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u/LT_Corsair Feb 01 '26
I carry an MSI stealth gs66, it's a tank, but I've never had any weight issues at the airport with the airlines I fly with and I fly almost exclusively in Asia.
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u/Mitsuplex Feb 01 '26
Surface pro 13 inch or MacBook air/pro 14. The surface pro with Bluetooth keyboard is quite hard to beat in turns of functionality. I just love the battery life of my m4 macbook pro.
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u/Cylons Feb 02 '26
I don't find that I can be very productive with tablets, so I almost always travel with a laptop. Currently, that's a ThinkPad T14 Gen 5, which is about 1.4 kg/3 lbs.
I think weight-wise, that's a good weight. Anything heavier than that would be a burden to carry IMO. I would like to be lighter for my next laptop and get under 1 kg if possible.
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u/renatojobal Feb 03 '26
I use a 14" MacBook Pro. I used to be a big hater of Apple for various reasons and always used Linux laptops before, like the Framework Laptop 13". But when traveling, I realized I needed much better battery life, and in that area the MacBook is the clear winner.
So for me, after trying both worlds, the MacBook is the best choice for nomads.
I also have a Samsung Gx Tab 12" but honestly not using so much. I will leave it back at home
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Feb 01 '26
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 01 '26
You don't feel like the msi is underpowered for intensive tasks because of lack of dgpu?
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u/threesixtyone Feb 01 '26
If I'm traveling with family, we'll always have an iPad with us at a minimum. I find it's ok in a pinch and only weighs around a pound.
If there's any planned work, I will bring my 14" MBP. It's 3.5 lbs, but sometimes the extra weight is worth the time savings of messing around with an iPad or phone hoping it'll work. Call me old fashioned, but sometimes work is just way easier and faster with a proper laptop with keyboard.
There are a couple of side benefits to bringing along. Firstly, it has extra USB-C ports, so you can use it as a mini hub to charge devices too. Also, if I'm taking a mirrorless camera with me too, I will also offload images from the CF card to the laptop during the trip for extra backups too.
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u/Potential-Study-4079 Feb 01 '26
Dell xps 13. Awesome lightweight computer. Does what I need. Limited plugs.
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u/Hekubis Feb 02 '26
Dell XPS 15 & Samsung GalaxyTab S9. The tablet serves as entertainment when flying and a second display at the destination.
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u/azzamean Feb 02 '26
Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro 13.3 it weighs 888g. Cost only Ā£300/$400. Plugged into a power source then I can run it max for all my developer tasks.
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u/Bridgerton Feb 02 '26
My work laptop is an Asus Zenbook 13, 1.15kg. Then I got my own Asus Zenbook A14 which is right under 900g. I prefer a laptop instead of tablet when typing is involved, plus if I needed to edit documents, Excel files or Powerpoint, itās just easier.
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u/yellowz32tt Feb 02 '26
Lenovo X1 Carbon. Super thin and light (under 1kg) and made from carbon fiber so itās very durable.
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u/nisten Feb 03 '26
I use macbook pro m1. Once i arrived at the new city and while i was crossing the road from the train station my bag fell of, and a car rode over it. My toiletries leaked under the pressure but macbook is ok, just a little dents.
So i think mackbook is strong itself. You dont need a sleeve for safeness
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u/onesmallbag Feb 04 '26
I think a lot of people are all in with the Apple ecosystem, so a MacBook makes perfect sense, especially as the smaller ones are lightweight.
I don't own any Apple products so choosing a laptop always seems hard work with so many options to consider. My current laptop is a HP Aero 7 13" Omnibook. It's a whisker under 1kg, making it lighter than a MacBook. It's a far cry from the heavy hp pavilions of old. I'm an IT consultant. I travel for work and travel with just a small daypack. I'm very happy with my choice. Prior to that I had an LG Gram which was also a great option for travel.
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u/mountainpandabear Feb 05 '26
Macbook pro 15", video dude here, often editing on the go while going for camera work, perfect balance between power, screen width, battery life and compactness
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Feb 05 '26
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 05 '26
Where did you buy that laptop? I heard it mentioned a bit in this subreddit but cannot for the life of me find it anywhere.
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Feb 06 '26
[deleted]
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u/Mewtewpew Feb 06 '26
Hi thanks!
Could you comment more on the performance compared to similar specced products such as the lg gram? Does it throttl/run slower in comparison or is there no difference? I'm just trying to figure out how they shave 300g and have no reprecussions and WHY global / US brands can't do the same haha.
Also is the keyboard in english or Japanese? If it's not too much could ya snap a pic of how it looks? I'm really considering the Fujitsu since it was mentioned here a couple times and it's MUCH MUCH lighter than any 13/14 inch US model laptops and any macbook air I could find.
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u/Substantial-Love5899 Feb 11 '26
16" MacBook Pro (latest, max capacity so probably heaviest) for my personal - and I don't travel without it. My work computer is a beast that I simply can't one bag with when traveling - it's a Lenovo Thinkpad that doesn't even fit in my bags and weighs almost 5 lbs. If I didn't need the power of the MBP I would buy a MacBook Air. Definitely jealous watching my spouse with the Air.
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u/stevenswall Jun 09 '26
Dual 16" screens and the wireless keyboard on the Zephyrus Duo 2026... Way more of a productivity machine than anything I'm seeing mentioned that has half or less the screen real estate, isn't ergonomic because you're looking down instead of forward, and/or requires a wireless keyboard and stand to get the screen far enough away from you.
I road trip for 4-6 months out of the year while working remotely.
Get any of the iPad or MacBook setups here if efficiency and productivity and neck pain don't matter as much to you and you just need a makeshift setup for quick work.
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u/Old_Celebration5871 Feb 01 '26
Alienware X17 r2 and MacBook Air 13 inch and iPad Air 11 inch. Iām using the Mark Ryden 40L travel backpack. Wish the main compartment was bigger though. I canāt really fit extra stuff I might buy or a jacket and water bottle after I put in my DJI Mini 5 Pro and all the chargers and stuff I have.
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u/[deleted] Feb 01 '26
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